ERP SYSTEM FOR EUROPEAN CLIENT
Due to the sensitive nature of the data and the strict confidentiality clauses established in the contract with this European client, the screens presented use dummy content. This measure ensures the integrity of real information, allowing for the exclusive demonstration of the design solutions and architecture developed.
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This project consists of a high-complexity ERP, structured for the full management of processes, including modules for statistics, schedules, and various operational functionalities. Over the course of three years, I collaborated with a multidisciplinary team of analysts and developers in the creation and maintenance of an ecosystem that now exceeds 500 screens. My role as a product designer focused on ensuring functionality and visual cohesion across a large-scale system.
1. Context
The project arises from the need to modernize the information systems that support the procedural activities of a specific client. The primary focus is on creating a single point of access for the user, ensuring that different stages of the process are managed in an integrated manner through electronic interoperability.
2. Problem
There was a need to centralize data management, which previously occurred in a fragmented manner across different information systems. The challenge involved translating complex requirements from various stakeholders into practical and functional use cases. It was imperative to ensure confidentiality and security in accessing sensitive procedural information.
3. Process
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Requirement Gathering: Knowledge-sharing sessions were held with stakeholders to identify critical business use cases.
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BDD Methodology: Behaviour-Driven Development was applied to standardize requirements, ensuring both technical and business profiles shared a common vision of the software. Behaviour-Driven Development (BDD) is a technique that can be applied within agile software development to write requirements and use cases in a standardized way that is easily understood by team members with different profiles and varying levels of business knowledge. Thus, this methodology ensures that all project stakeholders share a common understanding of the software's expected behavior. By using BDD writing, the expected behavior of the software is described in User Story format, outlining scenarios simply and using the user's perspective and language. These scenarios can and should be specified before implementation and can be reviewed and reused throughout all stages of development, from functional specification to test execution. User Stories in BDD format are written using Gherkin syntax. Gherkin provides the ability to remove technical programming details and focus on functional behavior by validating the workflow according to the (expected) user experience.
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Gherkin Documentation: System behavior was described in the form of User Stories, using Gherkin syntax to remove technical noise and focus on the user experience.
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Development Cycle: Specified scenarios were reused throughout all stages, from functional specification to test execution.
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Collaborative Design System: I developed, in partnership with a fellow designer, a Design System to ensure interface consistency and streamline the development of the solution's modules.
4. Solution
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Modular Architecture: The solution was built using interdependent modules that share data and functionality in real time.
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Access Management: Implementation of three distinct access levels, where responsibility and confidentiality increase according to the assigned level.
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Customized Profiles: A structure that supports everyone from end users to administrative profiles and business rule supervisors.
5. Impact
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Uniformity of Understanding: The adoption of standardized languages allowed all stakeholders to understand the expected behavior of the software without ambiguity.
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Robust Security: The hierarchy of permissions ensured that access to critical data was strictly controlled by profile.
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Development Efficiency: The use of reusable User Stories accelerated the implementation and technical validation stages.
6. Conclusion
The conclusion of this project reflects the delivery of a robust and scalable digital ecosystem, where technical modernization was paired with clear communication across diverse user profiles. The implementation of the BDD methodology and Gherkin syntax not only ensured that business rules were faithfully translated into features but also established a quality standard covering everything from functional specification to test execution.
With a modular architecture and a rigorous permission system, the solution ensures the integrity of procedural processing and provides a seamless user experience through a single point of access, significantly elevating the organization's technological maturity.
